Update on Goodrich, the book has been thrown

[HornedFrog Purple]

AP-press report:

DALLAS -- Dallas Cowboys reserve defensive back Dwayne Goodrich was arrested Monday on three new charges in a hit-and-run crash that killed two people earlier this month.

Goodrich, who had been free on $50,000 bond on two manslaughter charges, was taken into custody at his suburban Coppell home about 9 a.m. and transported to jail in Dallas.

County Magistrate Alfred Campos Jr. initially set Goodrich's bail at $6,000 -- $2,000 for each new count of failure to stop and render aid. Another judge later raised it to $15,000 -- $5,000 for each count. Goodrich posted bond and was released.

Police said the Jan. 14 accident happened just after 2 a.m., while Goodrich was on his way home from a topless nightclub. Authorities say the football player drove his BMW at speeds of more than 100 mph between a concrete barrier and a burning car involved in an earlier highway accident.

A passenger in the burning car was trying to free the driver when Demont Matthews, 23, and Joseph Wood, 21, pulled to the side of the road and ran to help.

The BMW ran into all three rescuers, killing Matthews and Wood. The third man suffered a broken leg.

Court records show that investigators collected hair and blood from a point of impact in the center of the windshield of the backup cornerback's 2002 BMW 745i.

Tissue and hair also were found underneath weather-stripping near the windshield, and fiber and hair were found near the right headlight, the records show. They stated that fragments of glass with blood were collected from the right dashboard, and hair samples were taken from the right front seat.

Through his attorney, Goodrich has said he initially thought he'd struck only debris from an accident on Interstate 35E in northwest Dallas. Goodrich told investigators he was the driver and sole occupant of the car.

Failure to stop and render aid is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Manslaughter is a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison.

Dallas County District Attorney Bill Hill has said a grand jury could begin hearing evidence in the case next month.

As I had said earlier on the old board, this was/ is a pretty airtight case and the charges are well within reason with the evidence pretty strong. Now well sit and wait to see what happens.

[Senator]

I feel real sorry for the victims and their families. They had so much of life ahead of them. I don't know how many times I have stopped in situations that I thought I could help. What a waste all around.

[wade moore]

I think it is good that the book is thrown at this guy, football player or not. It was not only a hit-and-run, not only manslaughter, but on people trying to save a life. That is just ridiculous. You drive with that much wreckless abandon and you deserve what comes to you. Those generous individuals have lost their lives, and Goodrich should lose his freedom.

[bryce]

anyone remember the leonard little case? i think that was his name, anyway, some guy with the rams. wasn't he drunk, run a red light, and kill a woman? and i don't think he even got jail time, or if he did it was minimal, but i think all he got was probation. i think he was actually playing football the next season. (goodrich won't have to worry about that part, though - he's clearly one of the worst db's in the league...)

[jamesUMD]

The fact that Goodrich was on his way home from a topless nightclub gives me reason to believe he was most likely drunk, and the delay in him turning himself in, was an attempt to let him sober up before turning himself in. Good riddance! If I had his money, and needed to go hit the bar, I would call for a limo, groupie, or a coach if I had to, rather than drive home.

[sachmo71]

Some of the local legal eagles are saying he probably won't see day one of jail time for this. I couldn't believe it, but that's what I heard.

[Easy Mac]

Originally posted by bryce
anyone remember the leonard little case? i think that was his name, anyway, some guy with the rams. wasn't he drunk, run a red light, and kill a woman? and i don't think he even got jail time, or if he did it was minimal, but i think all he got was probation. i think he was actually playing football the next season. (goodrich won't have to worry about that part, though - he's clearly one of the worst db's in the league...)

Here's some info I could find on that, strangely, he was arrested a few days ago for threatening an ex girlfriend a few year back.

In June 1999, Little was sentenced to 90 days in jail, 1,000 hours of community service, and placed on probation for four years after pleading guilty to involuntary manslaughter in the drunk- driving death of Susan Gutweiler.

and a little more

ST. LOUIS - St. Louis Rams rookie linebacker Leonard Little was charged Wednesday with involuntary manslaughter for his involvement in a fatal car accident and remained on leave from the team.
Little, 24, is accused of getting drunk on his birthday Oct. 19 and killing a woman in an automobile accident. He faces one to four years in jail under sentencing guidelines, St. Louis Circuit Attorney Dee Joyce-Hayes said.
Little surrendered to authorities about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, posted bond of $25,000, and was released by 11 a.m., attorney Scott Rosenblum said. He is to be arraigned sometime next week.
On Monday, Rams coach Dick Vermeil said he assumed that Little would return to the team and get some semblance of normalcy back in his life. He reiterated that stance on Wednesday.
"Is it a tough decision for me to allow him to play?" Vermeil said. "I just would want Leonard to be handled the same way any other American citizen would be regardless of if he plays in the NFL or works for IBM."
Little and his advisors decided this week was too soon. Rosenblum said there was no timetable for the return of Little, a third-round draft pick who has been one of the Rams' top special teams players.
"It's a lot to take in for a young man," Rosenblum said. "He needs some time to clear his head, and hopefully that's the direction he's going."
Teammates, some of whom wrote Little's No. 57 on their wrist tape for last week's game, appeared shocked by the news. Rookie tight end Roland Williams said Little has been unfairly villainized.
"He's not a bad guy, he's not an alcoholic," Williams said. "It's just unfortunate that a lot of people are making him out as a bad guy, and really he's not. He's hurting now, he feels real bad."
Linebacker Eric Hill said he thought it would be good for Little to resume his career.
"You know how it is, idle time and an idle mind can be more dangerous than anything," Hill said. "I just think being here and doing what he loves and just finding some peace in his life would be good.
"It's a disaster right now."
Little had been staying with family in Tennessee since shortly after the accident. He is accused of getting drunk at a party before his sport utility vehicle broadsided a car driven by Susan Gutweiler of Oakville at a downtown intersection. The 47-year-old woman died the next day.
"The tragic thing about the whole thing is Sunday we lost a game. In contrast to what was lost in the accident it makes losing the game seem very small, very small," Vermeil said.
Late last week, police released a blood test that showed Little had a blood-alcohol level of .19, nearly twice the legal limit of .10, at the time of the accident. Little had been celebrating his 24th birthday with teammates at a charity function at a downtown hotel earlier that evening.
Joyce-Hayes said Little got no special treatment. She said charges were filed perhaps faster than usual in cases involving drunken driving.
Under Missouri law, an involuntary manslaughter charge is not automatic in drunken driving charges involving a fatality. She said her office will have to prove Little's intoxication impaired his driving in some way that caused the crash.
"We will have to prove that he was speeding, ran a red light or something like that," Joyce-Hayes said.

I liked the teammate who said its good he come play again so he could clear his mind. Yeah, he killed a person, he definitely needs to be paid a million a year to clear his mind. I don't see why killing someone isn't life in jail, especially when driving drunk. You voluntarily get drunk and drive, doesn't matter if you meant to kill them.

[AgPete]

Goodrich is full of s**t. I'm sorry, I don't care how fast you're going, you notice when you hit THREE people on the highway! And if there was any doubt he was lying, they found hair from the victims stuck in his windshield. When he replaced Derek Ross against the 49ers, he was burned and one of the main reasons the Cowboys couldn't beat the Niners. Jones released Bryant Westbrook, Pat Dennis and Dwayne Hawthorne who were all better corners. The only reason that guy is still on the Cowboys is because Jerry Jones won't admit he wasted another high draft pick. There are a lot of "Jerry's Kids" on the Cowboys that will be gone when Parcells takes over.

[kcchief19]

Originally posted by sachmo71
Some of the local legal eagles are saying he probably won't see day one of jail time for this. I couldn't believe it, but that's what I heard.
Why should we be surprised? Laura Bush didn't get any jail time when she ran a stop sign in Texas and killed someone, so why would they punish Goodrich?

I understand accidents. But if you're drunk, speeding or running stop signs, it's not an accident. An accident is spilling milk on the kitchen counter. Killing someone is against the law. I say put 'em all away.

[Draft Dodger]

Originally posted by sachmo71
Some of the local legal eagles are saying he probably won't see day one of jail time for this. I couldn't believe it, but that's what I heard.

sadly, my intuition is that he's not going to do anywhere near the amount of time he deserves.

[HornedFrog Purple]

Just another update.

Goodrich has been charged with 2 counts of manslaughter and 3 counts of failure to stop and render aid. Failure to stop and render aid is a felony punishable by up to five years in prison. Manslaughter is a second-degree felony punishable by two to 20 years in prison.

Additionally, he has 3 lawsuits. Two are from the deceased's families and the other is from a survivor with the crushed ankle for $37 million.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally posted by HornedFrog Purple
...and the other is from a survivor with the crushed ankle for $37 million.

Geez, who the hell was the survivor, a professional ankle model ?

[Poli]

Originally posted by JonInMiddleGA
Geez, who the hell was the survivor, a professional ankle model ?

Nope, just a Cowboys fan.

[JeeberD]

I haven't seen this mentioned the past couple of days, but Goodrich was sentenced to a mere 7 1/2 years in jail. He's getting off way easy. Seems to me like he should be spending the better part of the rest of his life in jail, not just a few years...

Link to ESPN article (http://espn.go.com/nfl/news/2003/0819/1599074.html)

[JeeberD]

Sorry... :(

[Neuqua]

Originally posted by Ronnie Dobbs2
Damn you Jeeber...

I thought for a second HFP was back. :(

Same here, i started searching through the posts here wondering if there was a welcome back thread.